U.S. Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) today hailed the rejection by the
U.S. Supreme Court of the "Communications Decency Act."

Rep. Nadler, who was one of 16 members who voted against the measure when
it passed the House of Representatives in 1996 said, "I am pleased that a
majority of the Supreme Court has recognized that this law was the
cyberspace equivalent of book burning. The Court's decision will ensure
that Americans will not have to sacrifice their fundamental rights when
they log on to the Internet."

Rep. Nadler, who represents New York City's "Silicon Alley," a cluster of
emerging Internet innovators, was an outspoken opponent of the CDA when it
was considered by the House Judiciary Committee. Rep. Nadler serves on the
Subcommittee on the Constitution.

Rep. Nadler called the CDA an excessive reaction to the public's concern
that inappropriate material would be available to young children on the
Internet. "As a father, I understand the concerns of parents. But there
are technologies currently available to parents to screen what their kids
see on the Internet without reducing the free speech of adults to what
would be appropriate for an 8-year-old. There is simply no need to censor
the speech of adults to protect children."

Rep. Nadler said, "We won in Philadelphia, we won in New York, and now we
have won in the Supreme Court. We promised not to give up the fight, and
to continue our efforts to keep the Internet free, and we have done just
that."

Rep. Nadler said, "I hope that Congress and the President will read the
Court's decision and learn from it. WE don't need, and cannot afford,
renewed efforts to evade the Court's decision and censor speech on the
Internet. I am thankful that the Supreme Court has joined the choir of
voices that have declared this bill an indecent assault on American
liberty."